She walks in beauty Flashcards
“She walks in beauty”
celebrates female beauty, a portrait of a woman through someone else’s eyes
Context
Byron was a leading figure of the Romantic movement and liked to break conventions. his private life was very public and he was known for his many relationships with different women.
“like the night”
The simile ‘like the night’ to symbolise that this woman is different to all other women he has admired. Byron breaks the ordinary conventions of romantic poetry by emphasising how attractive her darkness is. For example, Shakespeare compares someone to ‘a summer’s day’.
“dark and bright”
The contrast of ‘dark and bright’ throughout the poem. This could suggest that both ‘dark’ and ‘bright’ come together in this woman to create perfection and balance.
“raven tress”
The adjective ‘raven’ could suggest an element of danger about the woman. Once again, Byron is breaking conventions of the stereotypical sense of beauty, showing the appeal and intrigue of such darkness and mystery.
“A heart whose love is innocent!”
Why does Byron only mention ‘love’ in the last line? There are many interpretations for this. It could suggest that he is just physically attracted to her so he doesn’t ‘love’ her. However, it could suggest that by writing the poem in the order he does shows the process of falling in ‘love’ with someone and he realises at the end that he does ‘love’ her.
“Of cloudless climes”
There is a use of alliteration here. The emphasis on the first letter creates a repeated sound to emphasise the poet’s emotions.
“One shade the more, one ray the less”
‘shade’ is contrasted with ‘ray’ and ‘more’ with ‘less’. This repeated use of opposites may highlight the confusion in the speaker’s mind as he tries to come to terms with trying to describe the woman’s overpowering attractiveness – something which is basically beyond words.
“the smiles that win, the tints that glow/but tell of days in goodness spent”
The metaphor suggests that her smile could win any man over, her smile lights up her face and brings a smile to everyone who sees her. More importantly the conjunction ‘but’ show that her glow is from the inside and is a reflection of what a nice-natured woman she is.
